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[ EDITORIAL ]

Lakeland Police Scandals: 'It's Not Working'

Published: Sunday, October 6, 2013 at 12:01 a.m.

Last Modified: Saturday, October 5, 2013 at 9:45 p.m.

Two of Lakeland's city commissioners put their fingers on the problems of the Lakeland Police Department on Friday and the reform effort by Police Chief Lisa Womack with the concurrence of City Manager Doug Thomas.

Part 1 of 2

"It's not working," said City Commissioner Don Selvage on Friday morning. He spoke during a City Commission agenda-study meeting. Study sessions prepare commissioners for formal meetings, such as that scheduled for Monday at 9 a.m.

"We, still, as a commission, have not grasped the magnitude and the severity of this problem in our community," said Commissioner Howard Wiggs to reporters after the meeting.

Not only were Selvage and Wiggs the only commissioners to recognize the urgency in solving the string of police scandals that appeared in January and continues to unravel, they were the only two of seven commissioners who voted against supporting Womack. The other five commissioners voted to continue supporting Womack, at least until presentation of the Lakeland Police Advisory Commission's final report, scheduled for Oct. 21.

Indeed, Commissioner Edie Yates nearly headed off Selvage, who had made clear his desire to make a statement about the Police Department and Womack.

"I would like to propose that we go ahead and just have a vote — thumbs-up, thumbs-down — to decide whether to wait until Oct. 21 and hear the report from the board that you all commissioned," Yates said.

Of the Police Advisory Commission, she said, "I just feel like we are castrating that commission if we don't allow them to do their work after we assigned it to them."

Nonetheless, Selvage spoke.

THREE FAILURES

"Last week's shocking incident about one of our sworn officers being arrested for sexual battery, and the response from those calls from the alleged victim and others reporting the officer's actions have led me to conclude that we have a crisis of leadership in that department — a crisis that the current chief cannot control," Selvage said.

He said he has supported Womack for eight months. "But I've also been very attentive as to how she's handled this as a leader, asking these questions: Are her people listening to her? Is the culture of that department changing? And what message is she sending to her department? Three, not one, but three incidents have convinced me that this is not the case.

"One, the Lt. Lehman case. The officer in charge of our internal-affairs investigation is accused by the state attorney of coaching another officer to illegally alter court documents. That's pretty serious stuff," Selvage said. He criticized assignment of Hans Lehman, while under investigation, "to train new police officers." He asked, "What message does that send to the department?

"The second involves the infamous bra-shaking search, resulting in a video that went viral," Selvage said. "A press release comes through my e-mail, stating that the search was not illegal and the officer, for not turning the audio on of his camera, is being punished with one day unpaid administrative leave. Something does not compute here — was the officer conducting a search properly or not?" Selvage asked. "What message is being sent to the department?

"But last week's incident pushed me to this point," Selvage said. "Obviously the officer now in jail had not gotten the message, but, more important, neither had an operator in our call center or a sergeant assigned to investigate the allegation. When I listened to the 911 tape and read the transcripts, I thought to myself, these people are not getting the message."

LEADERSHIP

"The issue is not about putting in place proper policies and procedures — it is about leadership," Selvage said. "We need someone in charge who will demand change, who will tolerate no wavering, who will crack the whip so loudly that everyone in that department will get in line — or face immediate consequences. Perhaps Chief Womack is trying, but, in my view, it's not working."

Exactly. The City Commission has ignored its duty too long. It also needs to demonstrate leadership. Monday it should do so by firing City Manager Doug Thomas and Police Chief Lisa Womack for the collapse of the Lakeland Police Department.

<p>Two of Lakeland's city commissioners put their fingers on the problems of the Lakeland Police Department on Friday and the reform effort by Police Chief Lisa Womack with the concurrence of City Manager Doug Thomas.</p><p><center><i>Part 1 of 2</i></center></p><p>"It's not working," said City Commissioner Don Selvage on Friday morning. He spoke during a City Commission agenda-study meeting. Study sessions prepare commissioners for formal meetings, such as that scheduled for Monday at 9 a.m.</p><p>"We, still, as a commission, have not grasped the magnitude and the severity of this problem in our community," said Commissioner Howard Wiggs to reporters after the meeting.</p><p>Not only were Selvage and Wiggs the only commissioners to recognize the urgency in solving the string of police scandals that appeared in January and continues to unravel, they were the only two of seven commissioners who voted against supporting Womack. The other five commissioners voted to continue supporting Womack, at least until presentation of the Lakeland Police Advisory Commission's final report, scheduled for Oct. 21.</p><p>Indeed, Commissioner Edie Yates nearly headed off Selvage, who had made clear his desire to make a statement about the Police Department and Womack.</p><p>"I would like to propose that we go ahead and just have a vote — thumbs-up, thumbs-down — to decide whether to wait until Oct. 21 and hear the report from the board that you all commissioned," Yates said.</p><p>Of the Police Advisory Commission, she said, "I just feel like we are castrating that commission if we don't allow them to do their work after we assigned it to them."</p><p>Nonetheless, Selvage spoke.</p><p><b>THREE FAILURES</b></p><p>"Last week's shocking incident about one of our sworn officers being arrested for sexual battery, and the response from those calls from the alleged victim and others reporting the officer's actions have led me to conclude that we have a crisis of leadership in that department — a crisis that the current chief cannot control," Selvage said.</p><p>He said he has supported Womack for eight months. "But I've also been very attentive as to how she's handled this as a leader, asking these questions: Are her people listening to her? Is the culture of that department changing? And what message is she sending to her department? Three, not one, but three incidents have convinced me that this is not the case.</p><p>"One, the Lt. Lehman case. The officer in charge of our internal-affairs investigation is accused by the state attorney of coaching another officer to illegally alter court documents. That's pretty serious stuff," Selvage said. He criticized assignment of Hans Lehman, while under investigation, "to train new police officers." He asked, "What message does that send to the department?</p><p>"The second involves the infamous bra-shaking search, resulting in a video that went viral," Selvage said. "A press release comes through my e-mail, stating that the search was not illegal and the officer, for not turning the audio on of his camera, is being punished with one day unpaid administrative leave. Something does not compute here — was the officer conducting a search properly or not?" Selvage asked. "What message is being sent to the department?</p><p>"But last week's incident pushed me to this point," Selvage said. "Obviously the officer now in jail had not gotten the message, but, more important, neither had an operator in our call center or a sergeant assigned to investigate the allegation. When I listened to the 911 tape and read the transcripts, I thought to myself, these people are not getting the message."</p><p><b>LEADERSHIP</b></p><p>"The issue is not about putting in place proper policies and procedures — it is about leadership," Selvage said. "We need someone in charge who will demand change, who will tolerate no wavering, who will crack the whip so loudly that everyone in that department will get in line — or face immediate consequences. Perhaps Chief Womack is trying, but, in my view, it's not working."</p><p>Exactly. The City Commission has ignored its duty too long. It also needs to demonstrate leadership. Monday it should do so by firing City Manager Doug Thomas and Police Chief Lisa Womack for the collapse of the Lakeland Police Department.</p>